Walt has been referred to as “the naturalist of old cast in modern times, the next generation of a proud and ancient lineage.” His field experience spans the globe: East Africa, Madagascar, Brazil, Ecuador (including Galapagos), Argentina, Australia, Antarctica, Mexico, Alaska, American West, and beyond. Walt teaches and advises on natural history, ecology, wildlife management, wetland ecology and management, interpreting nature through art & photography, ecotourism, and field biology. His passion for nature is contagious, and he loves to share his ecological knowledge through his teaching, guiding, photography, and art. He also is an activist working to save and improve management of lands in Arizona, California, East Africa, and elsewhere. Walt says that his ambition is "to balance a number of activities--art, photography, writing, lecturing, and guiding expeditions--toward the goals of nature interpretation and biodiversity conservation."

Editor and Narrator: Songs and Calls of North American Birds: A Reference Library for recordist Jim Morgan. 12 CD’s.

Artist and Photographer: Paintings in many collections, gallery shows, book illustrations and other graphics work. Hundreds of photographs published in magazines, books, calendars, exhibits. Illustrator of The Elk in the Attic (2007) and of Co-existing with Urban Wildlife (1996). Several major photo exhibitions for the Watershed We Want.

Walt's first published research was on Scaled Quail, the species he studied in SE Arizona. He published a vocal ethogram (catalog of sounds and their functions) on that species. He became the acknowledged expert on the full range of natural history subjects in the Sutter Buttes of California, the only mountain range in the entire 400-mile-long Central Valley. He continues to study wildlife and ecosystems in Arizona and on his extensive international travels. His Wetland Ecology & Management class received a grant from The Nature Conservancy to study beavers on the Upper Verde River.

Walt is an expert in field identification of plants and animals, in teaching ecological concepts and natural history, and in group dynamics. He has written manuals for tour guides and safari guides for clients. He co-founded the West Butte Sanctuary Company and founded the Sutter Buttes Naturalists, which evolved into the Middle Mountain Foundation in the Sutter Buttes of California. He was one of the pioneers of ecotourism in the US and internationally (led first US ecotourism trip to national parks of Brazil, first trip to Madagascar for major donors of the World Wildlife Fund, etc.). He also has experience with publishing and is a compulsive and detail-oriented editor. In addition, he is a wildlife painter and illustrator and has published hundreds of photographs in many places. He loves using his images and words to interpret nature for audiences of any size.